Heart of Gold (DISCONTINUED)
by Sunny the Ghostly Warrior
Summary: Goldkit is kind, timid, cautious and respectful. His brother, Silverkit, however is strong, fierce, brave and talented. ThunderClan thought that Silverkkit would grow to be the hero of the Clan, but fate might have something different in mind. Follow on an adventure as these two fight 'till the end. /OC based/
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own warriors.**

 **Special Thanks to: ShinySilverOwl001**

Heart of Gold chapter 1:

Two kits strayed far from the nursery, on a path that leads to the borders to an enemy Clan. If they continued for much longer, they would reach the Thunderpath, and would be exposed to the horrid smells and sights of the monster.

The silver kit's bluish-gray eyes observed with great interest. Ears perked and tail high, he wandered with confidence, leading his littermate further into the thick brush. The kit farther back had a ginger-gold pelt flowing down his body. With amber eyes, he scanned his surroundings, ears back and tail low in fear.

"Silverkit, you know we shouldn't be anywhere else besides the nursery!" mewed the ginger-gold kit, his voice echoed back through the dark, eerie forest alerting all predators of where they were.

Silverkit stopped and turned around. "Goldkit, you can always go home if you'd like. I am going to look around my territory!" Silverkit squeaked ears slightly back. He then turned his attention back to the path ahead and padded a bit faster down it.

Goldkit looked around into the forest, his tail scraped his stomach and his ears lowered until they couldn't anymore. He gulped and looked ahead for his brother, only to see he was far ahead. "Wait for me!" Goldkit squeaked, going as fast as his short, stubby, kit legs could take him.

Silverkit stopped in his tracks and his ears picked up a slight rustle in the leaves behind him. Goldkit finally reached his brother panting, opening his mouth to say something, he was shushed by Silverkit. Both looked into the bush, Goldkit shaking and hiding behind Silverkit.

A flash of cream fur tackled Goldkit to the ground, causing him to yelp in surprise. Silverkit got into a messy attack position, his muscles stiffening. He growled a little, but once he saw what attacked his brother, his muscles loosened. A solid creamed-colored kit with pale green eyes had pinned Goldkit down. The kit smiled and got off Goldkit, but he stayed still shocked. Silverkit padded over and helped his brother back to his feet.

"Silverkit… What just happened?" Goldkit asked innocently.

Silverkit chuckled. "Quietkit just won!" He mewed, and the cream colored kit smiled and walked closer.

Goldkit looked at Quietkit and jumped on her. "How are you so... so quiet!?" He squeaked.

Quietkit smiled, "I have my name for a reason." She whispered in her normal calm tone. In fact, the two brothers had never heard her voice in anything other than a whisper.

Silverkit looked at Quietkit, "How did you find us? And are you alone?" He tried growling but it came out as a hiccup.

Quietkit stood up next to Goldkit. "I followed you when you first left the nursery. Knowing you, Silverkit, you would drag Goldkit into danger. And, yes, I am alone." She mewed quietly as she always did.

Silverkit rolled his eyes and turned around to the path again. "I am going to continue, are you two coming?" He stretched and looked over his shoulder.

Quietkit shrugged and Goldkit looked fearful again. "We should go back, Silverkit." He squeaked.

Quietkit nodded. "It's almost sundown, and Sandstar will start to send warriors after us." she mewed, trying to be convincing.

Silverkit looked back with a sigh. "Fine… let's go…" He groaned and started retracing his steps back to the ThunderClan camp.

After a while, Silverkit reached camp, Quietkit and Goldkit in tow. They snuck back into the nursery through the little patch that was missing its brambles.

"There you three are!" wailed Blizzardcloud, a pure white queen. Quietkit looked up and walked past her to her mother, Swiftfeather. Blizzardcloud let the two brothers go to their mother and went to her own kits, Snowkit and Frostkit.

Goldkit saw his mother, Greypelt, and started to get worried that she would be mad. Silverkit glanced at Goldkit's expression and nudged him. "Don't worry Goldkit." He whispered, then trotted up to Greypelt, Goldkit following slightly slower.

When Greypelt saw her kits, she smiled and wrapped her tail around them, purring soothingly. Goldkit expected to be lectured, but this surprised him. Silverkit smiled and looked up at his mother.

"Where were you two?" Greypelt meowed and started grooming Goldkit.

"We were patrolling our territory like real apprentices." Silverkit squeaked, smiling.

Greypelt looked at him and stopped grooming Goldkit, making him whimper. Greypelt sighed and continued grooming Goldkit.

Silverkit saw this and looked at his mother. "Don't worry, the most danger we ran into was Quietkit almost giving us a heart attack!" Goldkit squeaked, supporting Silverkit.

Greypelt smiled and chuckled as she finished grooming Goldkit and put him near her stomach where he curled up and began to fall asleep.

Silverkit looked at his brother, then back at Greypelt. "I was a strong leader, Mother, Goldkit was like my deputy! And Quietkit… She was like our… Umm…. stealth cat?" He looked confused and heard Quietkit's giggle from across the nursery.

Greypelt smiled. "Of course, that makes perfect sense." She muttered and began grooming him.

Silverkit saw Snowkit and looked confused at her. "Has Snowkit opened her eyes yet? How is Frostkit?" He asked.

Greypelt thought then spoke gracefully. "No, Silverkit, Snowkit was born just two sunrises ago. She won't for a while, and Frostkit is the same." She meowed.

Silverkit nodded. "Did Sandstar find out that we left?" He mewed.

Greypelt smiled. "I don't think so... You are filled with questions today, what's going on?" She meowed.

Silverkit shrugged. "I want to know this stuff so when I am an apprentice I am ahead!" He mewed.

Greypelt smiled and finished grooming Silverkit. She then put him near Goldkit and he closed his eyes, falling asleep. Silverkit began shifting in his sleep due to a nightmare.

 _Silverkit ran further into the ThunderClan territory when many cats, from each Clan were running away from something. Or someone. As they ran, Silverkit saw Greypelt and his father, Gingerfang. But there was no sign of Quietkit, nor of Goldkit. Then, Silverkit heard a yowl, more of a leader yowl and looked to see Sandstar sprinting away just like everyone else._

Silverkit jolted awake with a yelp and saw that Sandstar had yowled for an announcement. Nothing else. He sighed. Everyone else was asleep. He smiled a little, then he heard something that changed his life.

"All cats who can catch their own prey, gather before me." Sandstar announced to his Clan.

 **Hope you Liked it, review please!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Warriors.**

 **Special Thanks to: SHinySilverOwl001**

Heart of Gold Chapter 2:

Goldkit awoke to his brother, jolting up, panting, then he heard Sandstar's stern voice.

"Are you alright all right, Silverkit?" he mewed, standing up. In response, he got received a groan and a nod. Turning, he expected to see Greypelt right behind him, but nothing was there.

"Where is Mother?" Silverkit asked, looking around. Goldkit jumped on him to get a better view of the nursery.

"I don't know, I don- I SEE HER!" he mewed loudly, causing Silverkit's ears to twitch in annoyance. He then shook his brother off, and with a thump, Goldkit hit the ground. Soft purrs of amusement came from behind them. Both turned to see Quietkit smiling.

"How are you so quiet?!" Silverkit grumbled in frustration, only to be ignored. He groaned and continued.

"Goldkit, you said you saw mother. Where is she?" He asked and Goldkit perked up.

"I saw her over at the entrance to the nursery!" he squeaked, and as he said, Greypelt was standing there, poking her head out of the nursery. With a simple nod, she came back in and walked to the three.

"Come on you three, Sandstar wants you to join this announcement." she meowed, nudging them out of the nursery. Once outside, they weaved themselves through the crowd of cats making sure to be the closest to the Highrock.

A soft smile grazed Sandstar's lips, silently inviting the kits to the ceremony. "From this day forward," he started, staring down at the three kits. "Until they earn their warrior names, these three apprentices shall be known as Quietpaw, Goldpaw and Silverpaw."

Silverpaw looked up, determined to hear who his mentor will be, while Goldpaw felt afraid if he got a ruthless warrior as a mentor. Quietpaw didn't bother to show emotion and just nodded.

Sandstar looked over at a dark brown tabby tom with short legs and hazel eyes. "Barkfur, you are ready for an apprentice. You shall be the mentor of Goldpaw. Teach him well." he spoke fiercely. The brown tabby tom nodded and walked over, touching noses with the nervous apprentice.

The leader's gaze shifted to a petite dark grey tom. "Pebbleblaze, I am sure you will be able to teach Quietpaw the true meaning of stealth. You shall be her mentor." Sandstar meowed and the dark grey tom nodded, padding over and touching noses with Quietpaw who smiled slightly.

Then, Sandstar looked into Silverpaw's eyes, a small smile graced on his face. "Silverpaw, I have admired your passion and bravery from when you were a young kit. And for that, I shall be your mentor." he meowed, leaping off Highrock and touched noses with the anxious apprentice.

"Quietpaw, Goldpaw, Silverpaw!" the cats of ThunderClan cheered, then went back to their day. Sandstar nodded to the new mentors and they turned in different directions, flicking their tails for their apprentices to follow.

* * *

Pebbleblaze led Quietpaw in the direction of the rising sun, and into the deep forest. Looking around, Quietpaw felt comfortable with her mentor, he didn't seem to talk much and always had a kind look in his eye.

Once they passed a couple of trees, and the sound of moving cats was no longer heard, Pebbleblaze slowed down to a steady walk. This gave Quietpaw a chance to walk next to her new mentor.

"I hear you don't talk much." Pebbleblaze meowed calmly. Quietpaw nodded, kind of ashamed of it. Pebbleblaze put his tail on her shoulder, sensing her mixed emotions and gave an encouraging nod.

"In most cases, not saying much can be the key factor to winning a battle." He meowed wisely, then stopped at the border to RiverClan. "This is where ThunderClan territory meets RiverClan." he muttered, spreading his scent, then continuing.

* * *

Goldpaw gulped, rounding trees behind Barkfur, who would flick his tail once and a while, signaling not to speak. Soon enough, they reached the path that Goldpaw had explored yesterday and walked faster along it.

"This is the way to the Thunderpath." Barkfur muttered, padding a little slower for Goldpaw to catch up.

Goldpaw tilted his head. "What's the Thunderpath?" he asked boldly, with the warrior he didn't feel as scared as he did with Silverpaw. Barkfur stopped, and Goldpaw followed his sudden stop.

"The Thunderpath is a path that twoleg monsters live on. Rushing past, leaving a burning feeling in your mouth as you breathe in the fumes. The monsters crush all in its path." he meowed, then turned back to the path, following it. Goldpaw shuffled his feet and followed slower.

When they reached the Thunderpath, the foul smell caught Goldpaw off-guard, as he tried breathing heavier looking for different air. Barkfur flicked his tail in the direction across the Thunderpath.

"That's ShadowClan territory." He muttered. Goldpaw was about to look when a monster rushed by, the sound making his legs tremble. Seeing this, Barkfur sighed and began to walk away from the path as another monster roared past. Eager to get away, Goldpaw rushed away with Barkfur.

* * *

Silverpaw looked around as Sandstar led him through trees and past boulders. Soon enough, they came to an area filled with stones, heated by the shining sun above them, and a smooth river near the rocks.

"Sandstar, what is this place?" Silverpaw asked. Sandstar looked over the stones and river, flicking his tail in the direction of the other side, where a cat stood. It was a silver tabby from what Silverpaw could tell, and it seemed to be looking at them.

The silver tabby turned and padded away, leaving Silverpaw even more confused.

"This is the Sunningrocks, currently ThunderClan territory. But, over there is RiverClan, a Clan that will fight us to get these rocks." Sandstar muttered, still looking in the direction the silver tabby went. "I believe that was a RiverClan warrior named Minnowfoot. I have seen her at Gatherings." Sandstar continued. Silverpaw nodded and they continued on.

* * *

After a while of learning the borders, the new apprentices gathered together back at camp, where they explained the day and how they like their new mentors.

"What now? Do we go back to the nursery?" Goldpaw asked, and Silverpaw smiled.

"Nope! We got to the apprentice den now!" he meowed and led the two to the apprentice den. Inside there were the two apprentices that have been apprentices for two moons. Stormpaw and Mosspaw just ignored the three and tried falling asleep.

Quietpaw, Goldpaw, and Silverpaw fell asleep together in a little pile. It was strange to sleep away from their mothers, but they knew that this is what apprentices do. So, together, they dreamed the night away.

 **I hope you liked it, Review please!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Warriors.**

 **Special Thanks to: ShinySilverOwl001**

Heart of Gold Chapter 3:

Goldpaw fluttered his eyes open to see Quietpaw in his face, smiling. In the corner of his eye, Mosspaw and Stormpaw were gone, and Silverpaw waited at the entrance to the den. Quietpaw nudged Goldpaw once again. He yawned and got up, walking to the entrance where Silverpaw looked irritated.

"You take too long." the silver apprentice muttered, leaving the den.

"You didn't have to wait for me Silver-grump." Goldpaw spat. Quietpaw raised a brow at the two brothers.

Goldpaw nudged Quietpaw and led them out of the den. The dim, grey light of dawn hit their fur, calming the morning stress. The gold apprentice looked around and spotted Silverpaw's tail leaving camp. _Training with the leader... I need to find Barkfur._ He thought, looking around for his mentor.

Quietpaw flicked his shoulder with her tail and looked to Pebbleblaze and Barkfur, who were talking with another cat. The cat they were talking to was a dark brown tom, and was the deputy of ThunderClan. Quillshade was his name, and he was well-known in all the Clans.

The two apprentices padded up to the three, who seemed to be taking about the seasons. Goldpaw caught a couple of sentences as they grew nearer.

"It's almost leaf-bare, we'll need all the fresh-kill we can get." Pebbleblaze whispered, concerned.

"I know, but most of the kits aren't old enough for apprenticeship." the deputy insisted thoughtfully.

"Quillshade, have you asked Timberstone and Featherheart if Mosspaw and Stormpaw are ready to become warriors?" Barkfur asked, looking at the deputy who shook his head.

"It's only been two moons, but I will ask them when they come back from dawn patrol." he promised, then padded away.

Goldpaw looked over at Quietpaw, who looked back, both thinking the same thing. Their mentors were worried about the Clan surviving the harsh season of leaf-bare.

"Hello, Goldpaw, Quietpaw." Pebbleblaze purred, touching noses with his apprentice. Barkfur nodded in greeting.

"Are we doing anything today?" asked Quietpaw in a whisper, as always. Pebbleblaze nodded, and flicked his tail to the camp entrance. Barkfur led the way, with Pebbleblaze right behind him, then the two apprentices exited.

The warriors led them to a clearing, pushing their way through, Goldpaw and Quietpaw could hear the scattering paw steps of mice running away. _Must be because of leaf-bare soon, they want to gather all the nuts to eat now._ Thought Goldpaw, remembering what Barkfur told him the day before.

Goldpaw walked into the clearing and looked at Barkfur, his emotionless face hit by the little sun showing. Quietpaw followed close behind her mentor.

"This is the training hollow. Today we practice your hunting." Barkfur muttered, stalking to the middle of the clearing with Goldpaw trailing after him.

"Quietpaw, me and you are going to train slightly different from Barkfur and Goldpaw, alright?" he meowed kindly. Quietpaw nodded, clearly exited. "Let's go then!" purred Pebbleblaze as he took Quietpaw into the far side of the training hollow. Goldpaw looked at Barkfur confused.

"Alright, Goldpaw. Show me your crouch." the brown tom ordered sternly. Goldpaw nodded and crouched sloppily. Barkfur shook his head, sighing "It's clear you don't know what you're doing. Copy me." he meowed, getting into a mouse-catching crouch. He stalked forward, one foot after another.

Goldpaw nodded and copied him, almost completely following Barkfur's movements. For once, the warrior looked impressed that the apprentice could learn so fast.

"Good job, but lower yourself more. That was a mouse-catching crouch. Next, I'll show you a bird-hunting crouch, alright?" he meowed, kinder then he normally spoke. Goldpaw realized that he had put his mentor in a good mood and nodded, ready to continue with the training.

* * *

On the other side of the training hollow Quietpaw watched the gold apprentice and his mentor, intrigued. Pebbleblaze let out a soft purr, catching his apprentice's attention.

"Ready?" He asked, tilting his head playfully. Quietpaw nodded, ready for the training.

"Okay, today I'm going to teach you what I like to call, 'the silent catch'." Pebbleblaze meowed proudly.

"Did you make that move?" asked Quietpaw in a low, exited voice. Pebbleblaze nodded and got into a crouch, much like Barkfur's.

Quietpaw noticed that the crouch was lower and his paws spread out wider instead of in a straight line. She looked closer, watching every move the grey tom made and noticed he was holding his breath. Quietpaw closed her eyes and focused on any sound around her. There was the crunch of fallen leaves that Barkfur was stalking on, same with Goldpaw, but other than that, nothing was heard.

Opening her eyes, she realized that Pebbleblaze was further away from her, sitting with his tail wrapped around his forepaws. He motioned for Quietpaw to take a try, which she did.

She lowered herself into a crouch and stalked forward, feeling Pebbleblaze's eyes following her every move. She was doing it almost perfectly, but a small crunch, hardly loud enough for a mouse to hear, made her try harder. She stood up and paced back to where she began, starting again.

After four times of trying, she was only a couple of tail-lengths away from her mentor, who was watching patiently. On her third try, she had heard Goldpaw being congratulated, making the fire in her heart burn brighter. She gulped and was about to put her paw down, when she stopped, placing it farther from her other paw silently.

Smiling, she reached her mentor in a few more moments, and ran to his side, copying his posture.

"That was great. It took you a little, but you learned it. It's about time you started catching prey." he purred, getting up. Quietpaw followed her mentor into the forest.

* * *

On the far side of the forest, Silverpaw was stalking up on a rabbit. He lunged and killed it in a swift blow. He had caught his first catch! Smiling, he padded to where Sandstar had rested, waiting for the apprentice to return. When he spotted the silver apprentice, he purred loudly.

"That looks nice. Remember-" Silverpaw had dropped his catch and interrupted the leader.

"Queens and elders are fed first. Hunt for the Clan, not yourself." Silverpaw recited, then realizing what he had done, lowered his ears and looked down. "Sorry, Sandstar."

"It's alright. I was not disappointed. Actually, I am quite impressed." the leader meowed, touching noses with Silverpaw.

"Thank you!" Silverpaw squeaked excitedly.

"Sandstar nodded and continued. "Bury that and go hunt for a little more. When you bring back one more piece of fresh-kill, I will show you a battle pounce." he ordered, flicking his tail to the forest behind him. Silverpaw nodded and padded off.

As he stalked through the forest, his ears were perked, listening for anything scattering across the forest floor. He stopped, hearing the low munching of a squirrel eating something, most likely a nut. Silverpaw crouched down, not knowing that two amber eyes were watching him.

Silverpaw sniffed, he was down wind of the squirrel. _Perfect…_ He thought, stalking closer to the scent. Finally, he spotted the small creature. To his luck, its back was facing him. He was just two mouse-lengths away when he pounced, killing the creature in a swift bite. He picked up his piece of fresh-kill and headed to the place where he left Sandstar.

A flash of pale ginger frightened the silver apprentice, Sandstar had followed Silverpaw, watching him hunt.

"You are ready for battle training. Follow me." Sandstar meowed, waiting for Silverpaw to finish burring his prey, and left into the direction of a small patch of stones. Silverpaw stopped and sniffed, there was plenty of prey here, but he was battle training, not hunting.

Sandstar got into a crouch and looked at Silverpaw.

"Come at me." he ordered, and Silverpaw did as he was told. Pouncing, he landed on the leader, but Sandstar rolled over, crushing the apprentice. Sandstar got off of Silverpaw and backed up a little, getting into another crouch.

"Again." he muttered. Silverpaw got up shakily and pounced again.

* * *

By sundown, Silverpaw had caught a couple of mice and was exhausted, he had been training all day. He padded into camp, following Sandstar, and dropped his fresh-kill into the fresh-kill pile. He smelled the pile and noticed a bunch of prey with the smell of Quietpaw and Goldpaw.

Looking around, he saw them coming out of the elders' den, probably to give them their share. Silverpaw raced up to them.

"Hey!" he called happily. They returned his greeting with a smile.

"Hi, Silverpaw!" Goldpaw squeaked happily.

Quietpaw nodded in greeting.

"We should get some fresh-kill and then rest. Today was a hard day of training." Silverpaw meowed to the two, who were already racing to the fresh-kill pile. Silverpaw paced himself as he joined them, eating quietly on a vole.

Afterwards, they went to the apprentice den, where they fell asleep, curled up together in a pile away from Mosspaw and Stormpaw. Once he fell asleep, Goldpaw shifted uncomfortably.

 _Goldpaw looked around, all that was in eyeshot was a vast, flat land. He couldn't help thinking he knew where he was, when a screech in pain caught his attention. Turning, he saw a group of cats, many cats._

 _On the outside, cats with a blood-thirsty look in their eye surrounded the other cats like a shell. He sprang closer and saw that the cats they were surrounding resembled cats of the four Clans. Looking closer, he spotted Silverpaw and Quietpaw staring at something. He hid himself from the blood-thirsty cats and gasped as he saw the body of Sandstar and the other leaders limp._

 _One of the blood-thirsty cats looked at him and called to another cat, most likely the leader. Silverpaw looked up and gasped._

 _"Run, Goldpaw!" Silverpaw shouted and a cat clawed him for speaking._

 _Goldpaw screeched as he bolted away from the horrid place, but was stopped by a dark brown tabby tom with a scarred eye, smiling viciously at Goldpaw. The cat lunged, and Goldpaw waited, shocked._

He woke up with a howl of fear. He looked around and realized he had woken up Silverpaw and Quietpaw, but not Stormpaw and Mosspaw. He panted, his body shaking in fear.

"Go back to sleep!" hissed Silverpaw, resting his head on his paws once again. Quietpaw rested her tail on Goldpaw's shoulder, trying to calm him as she fell back asleep.

Though he thought about it, he knew that he would not sleep that night. So he sat, waiting for the dawn light to shine dimly through the roof of the apprentice den.

 **Hope you Liked it, review please!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Warriors**

 **Special Thanks to: ShinySilverOwl001**

Heart of Gold Chapter 4:

After the long, agonizing night awake, Goldpaw saw the first streak of grey light pierce through the roof of the apprentice den. Seeing his littermate and his friend still asleep caused him to simply leave them be. He remembered that Mosspaw and Stormpaw had already left at moonhigh with their mentors for a patrol of the RiverClan borders.

The golden apprentice stood on his still-shaky legs, remembering the horrific nightmare from the night just before. The image of the snarling dark brown tabby that lunged at him before he ripped from the clutches of sleep still burned in his mind, not allowing him to feel safe in the almost completely asleep camp. He shook his head, trying his best to clear the dark thoughts that threatened to cloud his mind and shouldered his way out of the den.

It was almost completely quiet in the dimly-lit camp, only the sound of shuffling, groggy cats and the soft songs of morning birds filled the air, leaving a peaceful atmosphere that Goldpaw never thought about until now. Was it because of his nightmare? Did it cause him to see this world much more peaceful then it could be?

No matter, he reminded himself, ThunderClan camp is still the same ThunderClan it was yesterday. He heaved a heavy sigh and continued on to the fresh-kill pile, which was now only a couple mice and a magpie. He lowered his head and sniffed the small pile in front of him. It was sadly low which caused worry to swell up inside the apprentice, the Clan couldn't afford for him to take a mouse for himself nor the other apprentices.

Coming to a conclusion, he picked up the magpie and trotted to the nursery where Blizzardcloud was taking care of Snowkit and Frostkit. "Hungry?"

"Good morning, Goldpaw. Yes, I am very hungry actually."

With that, the golden apprentice dropped the magpie at the white queen's forepaws. "There wasn't much more than a couple of mice and that, so would you mind if you shared that with Swiftfeather?" he asked carefully, knowing the queen had her moments where she would snap easily. He and Silverpaw knew that all too well.

To his relief, the queen shook her head and let out a soft purr. "No, I don't mind. Now go find your mentor before he finds you!" she scolded slightly, tail flicking in annoyance. She knew Barkfur better than anyone because they were mates. He was the father to Snowkit and Frostkit and everyone could tell. Frostkit had small, dark brown patches on his white fur but Snowkit had some dapples on her flank but nothing more. He was sure that one of them would get the same hazel eyes that Barkfur had, and then a thought crossed his mind.

Barkfur was a dark brown tabby. Goldpaw knew that Barkfur wasn't the same tom that attacked him, the tom was much larger than the ThunderClan warrior, but it brought back memories of his nightmare. He still couldn't get over it. It was too disturbing. Sighing, the apprentice left the nursery and heard the white queen scoff behind him.

"Goldpaw," a stern voice called from behind the walking apprentice, causing him to stop in his tracks. _"Now go find your mentor before he finds you!"_ Blizzardcloud's voice echoes through his mind.

 _Too late…_ he thought and turned around, facing the tabby.

"Up so early?"

The slight concern in the warrior's voice confused Goldpaw. He had heard stories that Barkfur was a strong and stern warrior, hardly showing weakness, but this was out of character. He didn't know what to say at all, so he just nodded politely. The tabby looked at the apprentice and nodded to himself, looking to the side slightly before he turned his attention back to the apprentice.

"Mosspaw told me that you were awake when she left, so that makes sense." he said simply and flicked his tail to the fresh-kill pile. "I have an assignment for you."

"What is it?"

Barkfur looked at the apprentice, eyes narrowed slightly. "I wanted to see how fast you learn, so I want you to go hunting. Timberstone's patrol gave the all-clear that our territory is safe, so go and come back at sunhigh. I want to see how much you can catch." he explained, closing his eyes as more sun shone on the warrior.

Goldpaw was slightly confused, but more scared then anything. What if Timberstone got it wrong and there was something in the territory?

Not trusting his voice, the apprentice just nodded and turned towards the entrance of camp. He was just hoping, with all his heart, he will come back through that entrance at sunhigh. He heard a grunt of satisfaction from the tabby as he continues forward to the exit.

Looking back one more time, the apprentice took his very first steps outside camp by himself, and from there traveled wherever the scent of prey took him. The first thing he smelled was a squirrel, so he followed the trail and stopped short when he spotted the creature. It was thin, but surely good enough for an apprentice to eat. He crouched down and took slow steps upwind to the squirrel.

Then, he leaped on the creature, causing it to squeak just slightly before he killed it. It was a fine catch, sure, but not enough to please Barkfur and the apprentice knew that. So, he buried the furry creature in the leaf-covered ground and continued through the territory, all senses on full alert.

He then smelled a vole, and something else. The scent was familiar but he couldn't put his claw on it. The scent had a tinge that he had never smelled before, which caused more cautiousness to well up inside of him. Shaking his head once again he continued thinking he was paranoid. It was all because of that nightmare, wasn't it?

He was about to continue when the rustling of bushes caught his attention. The sound was much larger than any prey he had seen and it was coming at him. He crouched low and let out what he thought was a snarl, but it came out as a squeak. It was only his third day as an apprentice, he couldn't take on whatever this thing was!

In a flash of white, Goldpaw was tumbling with another cat. A white snarling, she-cat that had a strong grip and was old enough to be a warrior. His first thought was another Clan cat trespassing, but the she-cat didn't smell of any other Clan. His second thought was his conclusion, a loner. A lost or banished Clan cat that had strayed onto someone else's territory.

Goldpaw pushed the she-cat back with all the strength he could muster, causing the she-cat to stumble out of the rolling bundle. Goldpaw's head snapped to his surroundings and he saw he was too far away from camp to make a run for it, so he took another look at his opponent.

She was a dusty, white furred she-cat with long, lean legs and sharped claws, which where unsheathed. Her ears were tucked back and her fur fluffed, making her look twice her actual size. She had a long tail that twitched at every sound the forest made. But what caught his eye, was none other than the she-cat's eyes. They were blurry and glazed, meaning she was blind. Goldpaw didn't understand how she could be a fighter.

He didn't want to fight a cat at a disadvantage. No matter the punishment, she was probably lost, but he gave a small growl and called out to the she-cat. "You shouldn't be in ThunderClan territory."

The she-cat stopped snarling for a moment, and her tail ceased to twitch as she sniffed the air. Did she even know where she was?

Goldpaw watched as the she-cat bent back down and growled deeply at him, warning him to not come any closer. "If the Clan finds you, they won't care that you're blind." he reminded her, still ready if the she-cat were to attack.

"And why should I trust you?" she snarled, clawing at the ground slightly.

"Because I won't fight a blind cat."

The she-cat flinched at the sincere seriousness in his voice and stood taller, allowing her fur to lay flat on her back. "How do I know that you won't attack me? I am at a disadvantage, in your territory. Isn't it your job to keep cats like me out?" she hissed and Goldpaw thought quickly, trying to solve this without a battle.

"Why would I attack you? What would I gain? I would surely loose, even with your disadvantage. I have no more than two days of training, while you look like you know everything. I was told to hunt for my Clan, not patrol, meaning it is not my job to keep cats like you out, just to feed my Clan." his voice retained its shakiness from the earlier surprise attack. The she-cat was an enemy, he should be chasing her out of the territory, but he couldn't bring himself to hurt the blind cat. Something about her seemed to be more peaceful then a cat like Blizzardcloud or Barkfur.

The she-cat seamed to understand and stood firmly and looked at nothing, but her voice dripped with distress. "I'm in ThunderClan?"

Goldpaw nodded, but soon realized she couldn't see her and replied with a simple, "Yes."

The she-cat nodded to herself and swished her tail, as if she was worried. "Do you know where the twolegplace is?"

"Yes, yes, I do. Why?" he asked, coming closer to the she-cat who seemed to trust him slightly now.

"Can you bring me there? I want to get home."

With that response, Goldpaw couldn't help it. He let out a soft purr and complied to the she-cat's wishes and began to walk the way to the twolegplace. This she-cat was lost and didn't want anything to do with the Clan, why should he bring her in?

"Oh, yeah!" Goldpaw perked up, startling the she-cat slightly. "I'm Goldpaw, what's your name?"

The she-cat smiled warmly and composed herself as they continued on. "My names Lotuspelt. Nice to meet you, Goldpaw."

 **I hope you liked it, Review please!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own warriors.**

 **Special Thanks to: ShinySilverOwl001**

Heart of Gold Chapter 5:

Goldpaw stared at the blind she-cat as they padded further through ThunderClan territory. "Lotuspelt?" he questioned, dodging a nettle patch. The she-cat, Lotuspelt, nodded.

"You're a warrior? Of which Clan?"

"A Clan you're not familiar with."

"Huh?" Goldpaw stopped, the she-cat stopping as well. Another Clan? I thought there were only five in the forest… "Where is this Clan of yours? What's it called? Who leads it?"

Lotuspelt blinked her unmoving eyes and opened her mouth. "Would I be a good warrior if I spilled information on my Clan?"

"I guess not…"

Lotuspelt purred softly, making Goldpaw look at her. "I'll spare you this one time because you're showing me out. It's a Clan located beyond the Twolegplace and the large Thunderpath. Where the cats live without war for the most part."

Goldpaw raised a brow, stopping to stare at the foreign cat. "What do you mean, 'for the most part'?" he asked, amber eyes persisting Lotuspelt to answer.

"We have a rogue group. They cause more trouble now that their founder died." she explained, tail lowering slightly.

Goldpaw nodded, before realizing that she couldn't see him. "Makes sense… Hey, we're close to the border; you should be at the twolegplace soon enough."

As the apprentice said that, rays of sunlight hit them as the forest canopy faded away. The scent of the monsters that roamed the Thunderpath and the twoleg nests. Lotuspelt raised her head and sniffed, nodding as she did so.

"Ah!" she exclaimed, seemingly happy. "I remember this smell. Thank you very much, Goldpaw. I am in your debt." she meowed, turning her unmoving eyes to him. He touched noses with her quickly, silently saying good-bye to his friend.

"Take care and be safe." he mewed, amber eyes gleaming as the white she-cat trotted to the end of the Thunderpath and crouched down. He wondered why she was waiting when a monster's roar blasted in his ear, the beast racing down the path.

Once it disappeared, Lotuspelt sprinted to the other side of the Thunderpath and followed a fence, rounding the corner so Goldpaw couldn't see her anymore.

He smiled to himself before setting off, sniffing the air as he looked up at the sky. It would be a little while before sunhigh, meaning he still had time to hunt and get a bit more than one squirrel. Barkfur wouldn't be happy with a single rodent.

Sighing, the golden apprentice bounded away, scenting the sweet smell of a mouse not too far away.

* * *

By sunhigh, Goldpaw had caught two mice, one squirrel and a vole. Though, they were all thin, they would have to do for now. He walked from where he buried the fresh-kill and back to camp twice, not being able to carry all of them at once.

Barkfur, who sat at the edge of camp, watching intently, smiled at the apprentice, giving a small nod of approval. Confidence rose in Goldpaw's chest; pride in himself and his teachings. That was, before a certain silver apprentice padded into camp with their leader, each one carrying a large crow.

With furrowed brows, Goldpaw watch as Silverpaw set down the large crow and looked at the pale ginger leader. "Go get the rest, Silverpaw." he meowed and the apprentice left without another word, tail and head high.

The golden apprentice felt something on his shoulder and jumped, only to see Quietpaw there, her tail tip on his shoulder. Her eyes sent an encouraging glance while her small smile sent pity his way.

"I'm fine," he meowed, touching his nose to hers. "Thanks though."

She nodded and padded off, tail sweeping over fallen leaves casually. He tilted his head as her paws hardly crunched on the dry leaves, but he just shook it off.

"Good job today."

Goldpaw turned around to see Barkfur, his prideful look still on his face. "How about we battle train tomorrow?" he asked and the apprentice nodded eagerly, smiling as his mentor padded away.

Then, just as he was about to feel relieved, Silverpaw burst into camp. He was panting, eyes wide as he sprinted over to Sandstar. Pricking his ears, he heard their conversation and panic swelled up in his chest.

"Sandstar! I scented another cat in the territory!"

"Was it a rouge or a Clan cat?"

"Neither! It smelled of other cats but not a rouge group. And it doesn't smell like any Clan we have in the forest."

Goldpaw's eyes widened as he took a tumbling step back. Lotuspelt! He thought urgently, though he knew she was beyond the Twolegplace by now. He was worried that his scent was still there, by hers. Sandstar nodded at the silver apprentice and padded over to Timberstone, who was talking with Mosspaw.

"Take Mosspaw, Goldpaw, and Barkfur to check it out." he ordered, eyes narrowing. "Tell me everything about this… this trespasser."

Timberstone nodded, shaking his fur out as he stood, then walked over to Barkfur with Mosspaw in tow. Goldpaw wasn't listening anymore, he was panicking. StarClan help me! He thought urgently as his mentor and the others approached.

"Hurry up, apprentice!" Barkfur called, the slightest bit of teasing in his voice. The golden apprentice nodded and followed the others, Timberstone at the very front, as they slipped out of the tunnel exit of the camp.

After, an awkward silence filled the air but nobody dared to say anything as they came across the scent trail and Goldpaw prepared to defend himself. This was the same place he had met Lotuspelt, the evidence of their struggle still there.

Mosspaw, muzzle to the ground, padded forward, sniffing the leaf-covered ground before looking back up. "There's two scents here. They seem similar." she meowed, green eyes staring at her mentor.

Goldpaw was shocked, he and Lotuspelt didn't smell similar. The only thing the same was the smell of other cats. Bending down, he smelled the ground and found not only Lotuspelt's scent. But, another cat that was not himself. He thought back and a flash of white crossed his mind, the blind she-cat mentally smiling at him.

Thanks, Lotuspelt. He thought, guessing that this other scent was a cat of the same Clan that she was in. They did smell similar and had a tinge of each other's scent. Maybe, he realized, she had come to the Twolegplace with someone and that someone had helped him out.

It seems his new friend had paid her debt to him by covering their trail. He blinked back his surprise and sighed in relief, fear no longer shaking his body.

Timberstone nodded and looked at Barkfur. "Your apprentice can go take this information to Sandstar while we follow the trail."

Before the warrior could answer, Goldpaw shot up, eyes gleaming. "Alright! Should I come back or wait for you guys?"

Barkfur glanced at him, glaring slightly, making the golden apprentice flinch. "Stay back at camp."

Nodding, he sprinted away, almost slipping on the crunchy leaves below, eager to get back to camp and share the news. Somehow, though, deep within his chest, he had a feeling he would see the blind foreigner again in the near-future.


End file.
